Desmarais LLP achieved a significant pro bono victory recently – securing substantial payments of long overdue benefits for a veteran’s widow after the VA had repeatedly denied a benefits claim tied to her husband’s bladder cancer and Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam.
The settlement provided much-needed financial support to pro bono client Wilma Ruth Montgomery. Prior to receiving the back payments from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in July 2021, she was struggling to make ends meet and was at risk of losing her home in Kentucky. With the settlement, though, she was able to fully pay off her house and regain financial stability.
“The Desmarais LLP attorneys took a load off my back handling this case and getting the settlement,” she said. “It amazed me. … I just think the world of them. I trusted them 100%. I just want others in a similar situation, when they hear about my case and what these attorneys were able to accomplish, to have hope and not give up on the process.”
Partner Justin Wilcox, Associate Christian Dorman, and former Associate Tom Derbish represented Ruth Montgomery in the case.
Ruth’s husband of 38 years, Don Montgomery, who passed away in 2018, had served in the U.S. Army from 1964 to 1967. Don was a paratrooper who saw combat in Vietnam as a member of the elite 101st Airborne Division. He earned multiple decorations during his service, including the Combat Infantryman’s Badge and the Army Commendation with “V” device for valor. He later worked for more than 26 years at the Paducah City Fire Department, where he was the assistant fire chief.
After his bladder cancer diagnosis in 2008, Don filed a benefits claim with the VA due to Agent Orange exposure during his Army service in Vietnam. Though the herbicide has well-documented links to cancer, the Board of Veterans' Appeals rejected the claim, first in 2015 and again in February 2020 after Ruth filed an appeal.
“When I got that last letter telling me the claim was denied again, it devastated me so bad that I thought I was going to lose it,” Ruth said. “I can’t say enough good things about Justin, Christian, and Tom. If it wasn’t for them, I probably wouldn’t have the settlement today. They were so good, so kind, and so encouraging. They put their hearts into this.”
Following the February 2020 rejection, the Desmarais LLP team took over the pro bono case after connecting with Ruth through the Veterans Consortium Pro Bono Program, which gives veterans and their representatives access to free legal services in the federal courts and before the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.
Ruth spent three-plus days gathering all of Don’s medical records and providing them to the Desmarais LLP attorneys so they could fully review the case. The attorneys worked with her by phone, going through the records and receiving additional details on the case. Then, they quickly submitted a memo to the court highlighting where the VA erred in prior denials, which led to a court-ordered mediation conference. There, the Desmarais LLP team further explained why the claim was wrongly denied – specifically that the VA had not given Don Montgomery a sufficiently thorough medical examination. Then, in December 2020, without any additional briefing or argument, the VA agreed to a remand, and the court sent the case back before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals for further review.
Desmarais LLP continued to pursue the benefits claim heading into 2021. Meanwhile, movement on federal legislation provided a different avenue for relief. In January 2021, Congress enacted the National Defense Authorization Act, which held a key provision for the Montgomery case. The NDAA text included three additional diseases that qualified for VA benefits related to Agent Orange exposure – bladder cancer, parkinsonism, and hypothyroidism.
The Desmarais LLP attorneys immediately submitted a filing to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals, arguing that the VA’s prior rejections were now invalid because the updated federal law explicitly listed bladder cancer as a disease related to Agent Orange exposure and was fully covered by VA benefits. Following that filing, the Board of Veterans' Appeals granted the claim in April 2021 – providing full back benefits to Ruth Montgomery, which she received three months later in July 2021.
“I was going through a hard time prior to the benefits coming through, so I’m just so thankful for the attorneys’ help. They were so gracious and kind through the whole process,” Ruth said.
The case clearly illustrates the core focus of Desmarais LLP’s Pro Bono Practice. “The firm’s goal is to intervene and correct oversights and injustices that occur across the legal system as expeditiously as possible,” said Wilcox, who leads Desmarais LLP's Washington, D.C. office. In addition to the Veterans Consortium, Desmarais LLP has pro bono partnerships with the SDNY Pro Se Clerk’s Office, Immigration Equality, and Volunteer Lawyer for the Arts, among others. Desmarais LLP attorneys who perform a significant number of pro bono hours during the year also receive recognition for their contributions.
“This work is deeply rewarding for us, and Ruth's settlement was particularly gratifying,” Wilcox said. “It’s a great moment when you can help correct an error and dramatically improve someone’s life – especially when it’s the widow of a U.S. veteran. We take pride in our pro bono work at the firm and feel that it’s very important to give back as much as possible.”
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